Chapter Text
"Forever? Did you really think 'forever'?"
Taehyung frowned when Jeongguk looked at him blankly before suddenly laughing out loud, clutching his stomach and bending forward.
"Well, that was funny." He wiped a tear -absolutely fake to be precise- and Taehyung watched as his eyes turned back to normal.
"What the hell?" Taehyung breathed out and screamed when Jeongguk was seated on top of one of the cupboards within a moment, one leg crossed on top of the other. He hummed thoughtfully, snapping his fingers and the entire appearance of the house changed. Taehyung looked around, as the souvenirs and picture frames vanished into thin air.
"You know what? It was a difficult, difficult job to make such crucial illusions." Jeongguk blew air out of his mouth, rolling his eyes and cupping his chin with his palm. Taehyung stared mortified, as he played with two precious stones, swirling them in the air with the flick of his index finger.
"What sorcery is this?" Taehyung choked out, fisting his palms as he slowly backed off to reach for the door, but he shrieked when he felt himself pressing against a comparatively softer surface, turning around just in time to find Jeongguk looking down at him with a smirk on his lips and hands in his pockets.
"You..." Taehyung pointed at him, frantically looking around to search for him where he had seen him last.
"I..." Jeongguk mimicked his tone, before chuckling. "Am not a ghost."
"What?"
"You didn't look dumb to me when I first saw you." Jeongguk raised a brow, leaning forward which made Taehyung step back.
"Whatever." Jeongguk rolled his eyes, standing back upright. "It means I am not dead."
"You're not dead?" Taehyung stuttered, blinking to clear away the blur caused by his tears. He was more confused than scared right now. What kind of witchcraft was he caught in?
"Then... J-Jimin?"
"Oh, that's where I made my biggest mistake." Jeongguk groaned, "He is Korean, so I thought that meant he was the one I was searching for. But, it wasn't him. I made all this stuff up and blah blah about this imaginary Mr. Jeon, my fucked up dad. Mind you, my real father is fucked up too." He added quickly. "So, yeah. I made all the stuff up for him to get closer to me. Then when I was thinking about opening up about the prophecy to him, my father threw a stone at me from Heaven." He shook his head, sighing, "He told me that everything I did was a waste, because Jimin was not the sole heir to the Stones of Harmony."
"Stones of Harmony?" Taehyung tilted his head, swallowing harshly.
"Yes. The stones which control the five elements of the Universe." Jeongguk licked his lower lip. "You are the heir."
Taehyung stared at him for a few moments before clutching his hair and tugging at the roots as a scream of frustration escaped his lips.
"What do you mean by all of this?" He bellowed, "Are you kidding me? What the fuck is this all about? How can I be, whatever stupid thing you've made up? Who is this so-called father of yours? And..." He inhaled sharply, "Who are you?"
Jeongguk sighed, dropping his playful countenance, as he raised a hand to touch Taehyung's face. "Taehyung-"
"Don't." Taehyung moved away. He looked at him with blazing eyes, rimmed red. "What the fuck are you?"
Jeongguk dropped his hand back down.
"Have you heard of Janbaek, the God of Elements?" He asked calmly. Taehyung nodded after a moment of silence.
"I have. But, what-"
"I am his son." He stated, as if he was stating that E was equal to mc².
"What?" Taehyung chuckled sardonically, shaking his head.
"You heard me the first time." Jeongguk shrugged. Taehyung stared at him for a few seconds more before sighing shakily and leaning back against the closest wall, sliding down and clutching his knees to his chest.
"Did you kill me?" He whispered airily, "Am I dead? Am I imagining all of this?"
Jeongguk pursed his lips, shaking his head a little. "Trust me. It was not supposed to go this way. I didn't know Jimin would be here and..." He sighed. "I just didn't know."
Taehyung snickered, looking up at him. "So, you want me to trust you?"
"That's definitely something I want, but not right now." Jeongguk kneeled down in front of him, making Taehyung follow his movements with his eyes.
"I want you to hear me out." Jeongguk whispered, his tone gentle and if it had been just a few moments ago, Taehyung would have hugged him and slept in his arms. The idea was a no-no now. It was because he did not put much focus on it. But, there was an inkling that his heart was hurting like hell.
"I was supposed to let you know on our first date. Under a sky full of stars, so that you did not feel constricted." He sighed. Taehyung stared at him.
"Are you going to laugh again now?" He said in a small voice and Jeongguk slumped his shoulders.
"What now? I am not joking."
"I seriously can't take you seriously anymore." Taehyung said blankly and Jeongguk groaned, running a hand down his face.
"Alright. It is up to you to decide if you want to listen to me or not. But, trust me, it would be better if you did. My father would make it really difficult for you otherwise, which I don't want."
"My life is already hell." Taehyung chuckled mirthlessly, looking down at his folded arms.
Jeongguk swallowed a little, pressing his tongue against his cheek.
"I was serious when I said that brunch is ready." He said, pointing towards the kitchen. "Please, listen to me. We need your help."
Taehyung looked up at him. He was not sure what to focus on right now. The fact that he was in top tier trouble, or that he was played with again. Either way, Jeongguk drew the last straw and he barely felt anything grave. Or was it because it was so grave, that he was blinded by it?
"Okay."
-
Taehyung played with the fork, eyes on the plate. He could feel Jeongguk staring at him and he was sure that the other was going to ask him to eat again.
"Just..." Taehyung inhaled sharply, placing the fork down and looked up at him with brows pulled together. "Just get it over with."
"Okay." Jeongguk whispered, shifting a little in his seat, before leaning back and crossing his arms on his chest.
"I am the youngest son of Janbaek. In the beginning of the Universe, he had divided his powers and created five elements from parts of himself- earth, air, fire, water and void." He inhaled, "I am fire."
Taehyung hugged himself, nodding a little, "Go ahead."
"We have our powers stored in stones."
"The Stones of Harmony." Taehyung stated.
"Exactly." Jeongguk confirmed, sighing. "So, void is my eldest brother. Everything was going fine until he invaded the palace of the Gods."
"Why?"
"You see, void is the most unpopular among the five of us, because he is not associated with greatness. And he brewed a grudge within himself. He wanted absolute power. He had been dwelling in dark arts and so his powers had exceeded every other's among the immortals. We are not Gods, but he wanted to be one. The greatest, to be precise.
"However, to achieve his cause, he needed my stone."
"Your stone?" Taehyung frowned.
"I am the most powerful element." Jeongguk sighed, "He needed my powers to be the ultimate God."
"Oh." Taehyung leaned back, "But, you can create illusions, you said. That is logically not a property of fire."
Jeongguk chuckled, "About that. All the elements have an extra forte. Mine is creating illusions. Hyung's is manipulating people's minds and compelling them to do something and that is what he did." He ran a hand through his hair.
"What did he do?" Taehyung asked quietly.
"He almost compelled the coordinator of the stones to give him mine. But, before he could, Sir Taehwan gave me both of our stones from the altar, where all the stones are fitted."
"Take them away, Jeongguk!" Taehwan yelled, as Jeongguk walked in on them in a fatal position. "He should never get a hold of them."
"Give them back, Jeongguk-ah." His brother's eyes were pitch black, black tipped fingers around the older man's throat. "I don't want to hurt my baby brother, now."
"Sir Taehwan." Jeongguk breathed, his feet immobile and absolutely confused, as his hands holding the stones trembled. He had never seen such commotion breaking out in Heaven.
"Go, Jeongguk." He smiled a little, eyes wrinkling at the corners, as he countered void with a sudden attack. "Nothing will happen to me. You should save the universe."
"I disappeared from there. I have been hiding on Earth ever since. The exact place my father told me to. I came to know that my brother had disappeared." He looked at Taehyung with nothing but seriousness. "Without our stones in the altar..." He brought out the stones and Taehyung watched the black and the fiery yellow gems circling, levitating a few inches above his spread out palm.
"We cannot use our prime powers. Only our secondary ones." His tone was dejected. He closed his palm, before slumping his shoulders. "I miss my fire."
Taehyung swallowed a little. It was not like he did not believe him. He had to. The circumstances he found himself in bound him to. There was no scientific explanation of what was happening.
"But, what has it to do with me?" He spoke up finally.
Jeongguk looked at Taehyung then.
"You are the heir."
"What does that mean?" Taehyung breathed out, face scrunching in disbelief. "I can believe everything else you said. But, how does this make sense? I don't even know-"
"You are Sir Taehwan's son."
Taehyung froze. His eyes widened and lips parted.
"What?"
"Yes. He was not able to survive then, but my father made sure that you and your mother were sent safely to Earth. You were barely a few months old then, so you won't remember."
"That's utter bullshit." Taehyung's jaw ticked. "I know my parents-"
"They are not your parents." Jeongguk stated calmly and Taehyung's stomach dropped.
"What did you say?"
"You heard me." Jeongguk clenched his jaws. "I looked into your background and I found out that your mother died on the journey. You were found by the family you call yours and they bloody hell used you." He exhaled heavily. "I've given them what they deserved after I came to know what they did to you, so you don't need to cry over them."
Taehyung stared at him, the corner of his eyes blurring with fresh tears and he looked away. It made sense to him now- why they treated him like trash, why they pretty much kept him isolated from the rest of the family, why they made him do all the chores and why they could not be considerate about his mental health. They did not feel connected enough to care.
"Taehyung?"
Taehyung closed his eyes, letting the tears roll down his cheeks before he opened them to look at the kitchen cabinet absently.
"So, you mean to say that I have my father's ability to control and coordinate the stones?"
Jeongguk nodded, "Yes. Hyung is searching for both of us. To kill you and to take both the stones away from me."
"Why would he kill me?"
"You are the only one who can control the Elementals, if you put the stones back in the altar then you can revive my powers again, which he does not want. He is backed by dark magic, so he does not need you." Jeongguk sighed, reaching across the table to take a hold of Taehyung's hand, who did not react. "I need your help, Tae. My brothers and the entire universe do. Otherwise the harmony will be broken forever."
Taehyung looked at their hands, as Jeongguk softly caressed his knuckles with his thumb.
"I will. But, if you answer something first."
Jeongguk frowned, "What is it?"
Taehyung blinked continuously, before swallowing the lump in his throat.
"Was whatever you said to me last night, an illusion you created too?"
Jeongguk stared at him for a moment, before his lips pulled up gently.
"No."
"You're lying." Taehyung's voice broke.
"I cannot lie about anything which does not concern the great cause. Falling for you was entirely my choice. It does not concern anyone else."
"Then why did you act like you fell for Jimin too?" Taehyung bit his quivering lower lip. "Was it necessary for your great cause?"
Jeongguk sighed, "I did not. I just wanted to be friends with him. He interpreted it all wrong. So, I just filled his mind with illusions. About us together, about my fucked up character, then staging my death. So, that he left me and I could go searching for the real heir. I found you and at first, it was not in my plan to take things ahead with you, but..." He stopped, swallowing, before looking down at their hands.
"But?" Taehyung ushered.
"But, after that things went out of my plans a little." He smiled boyishly and Taehyung could just not feel his stomach flipping at that.
"When I said that I like you, it was in all sincerity." He leaned forward, "I have never lied to you about my heart, Darling."
Taehyung looked down. His head was throbbing a little, but not as much as it was supposed to be in this kind of a situation. So, was he really not a human?
"And..." Jeongguk let go of his hand. "If you still don't believe me... it is alright. When we go to Heaven, you will get back your powers and then you will be able to understand whether I am making an illusion. Sounds fair?"
Taehyung chuckled a little, still dazed, "Going to Heaven without dying. Sounds so queer."
"Indeed." Jeongguk smiled, crossing his arms again.
"So, when are we leaving?"
"Now, if you are fine with it."
"Really?" Taehyung raised his brows and Jeongguk nodded.
"Okay." Taehyung stood up. "Let's go."
Jeongguk followed, "Really? You could take your time."
"What for?" Taehyung tilted his head. "There is nothing for me here, anyway."
"Oh, well." Jeongguk pursed his lips, tucking his hands in his pockets. "You are right."
"By the way, what is your brother's name?"
"Void?" Jeongguk quirked a brow, "His name is Yoongi."
Taehyung's brows shot up to his head. "What?"
"Yes." Jeongguk's shoulders squared, "Do you know him?"
Taehyung swallowed, "He's Jimin's husband. I-I saw him just now, in the car."
"Bloody hell." Jeongguk gritted out, moving toward Taehyung and grabbing him by his shoulders. "Did he see you?"
"Very much, yeah." Taehyung breathed out. "But, they drove away. He might not have underst-"
"No, Taehyung." Jeongguk groaned, "He can feel my presence and the other way around. I thought I was hallucinating when I felt him close by. He might have been a bit confused, because he has never seen you, but he can be back any moment now." He gripped Taehyung's wrist, pulling him toward the closet and his eyes widened, when with just the flick of Jeongguk's fingers, the doors opened, but surprisingly not to shelves, but a void dotted with numerous white balls- just like what he saw of space in the documentaries. The difference was that it was very much real.
"This is insane." He whispered to himself.
"Let's go." Jeongguk intertwined their fingers, squeezing reassuringly and Taehyung looked at him, taking a deep breath before nodding. There was a dull roar in his ears, adrenaline coursing through his veins and his stomach felt odd. He was absolutely thrilled.
But, before they could step in, the front door broke open, lying flat on the floor. Taehyung looked at the intruder in horror.
His eyes were completely black, black veins lining his temples and neck and hands slowly turning black from the tip of the fingers.
"Missed me, little brother?"
Taehyung shivered at the raspy, airy voice, which floated like a siren's song. But, Taehyung knew better at the sight of the horrific countenance.
"Yoongi."
Taehyung gripped Jeongguk's hand tighter. Oh, he was in for a rollercoaster ride.